IT WAS quite a weekend for the Crouch family and it has been quite a year for Stoke manager Mark Hughes.

Peter Crouch scored the winner and there was no robot dance from him. The moves were left to his wife.

Soon after the final whistle, he was whisked away by helicopter to see Abbey Clancy – aka Mrs Crouch – win Strictly Come Dancing as he now lets his other half show off her fancy footwork.

“I’ll be honest, I would like to think I’ve given her some tips but I was nowhere near it,” said Crouch.

“She’s miles better than me. I’ve only got the robot in my locker.”

But his winner meant Stoke ended the day in the top half of the table and Christmas is much brighter for Hughes than it was a year ago.

He had been sacked from his job at Queens Park Rangers and his managerial future looked bleak.

After being dismissed by Manchester City and QPR in the space of three years with a relatively successful spell at Fulham sandwiched in between, questions had been raised over his capabilities in the Premier League.

Stoke fans were not impressed when he replaced Tony Pulis in the summer but Hughes is slowly rebuilding his reputation at the Britannia Stadium.

He is still far from loved by the Potters’ fans and knows a bad run will soon have them on his back. But after this deserved victory, they have reached their manager’s target for this stage of the season.

“It has to be viewed as progress,” said Hughes, whose side beat Chelsea in their last Premier League home game.

“We’re not halfway through the season yet and we’ve got a decent points total.

The Crouch household is sure to be in good spirits this Christmas [ALEX MORTON]

It’s always about trying to do my best to make a club and a team better

Mark Hughes

“It’s never about me. It’s always about trying to do my best to make a club and a team better. I’ve always gone into clubs and tried to make them better than they were when I first walked through the door. That’s what I’m trying to do here.

“I could understand why people were questioning me. I’ve just got to make sure that we have a good season and continue to build.

“It’s where we wanted to be at this stage. We’ve obviously got targets in terms of what we hope to do this season.

“We’re as near as damn it where we hoped to be so we’re pleased about that.”

One thing Hughes has tried to do with Stoke is change them from the long-ball team they were considered to be under Pulis.

But it was that tactic which gave them the opener here against Villa.

Geoff Cameron’s long punt forward was nodded down by Crouch in the 51st minute to Charlie Adam, who had just come off the bench at the break, and he turned the ball home.

Villa levelled through Libor Kozak in the 66th minute, but Stoke were back in front just four minutes later when Crouch was given all the room he needed to pounce and bundle the ball home.

The defeat was Villa’s third on the bounce and they are in real danger of being dragged into a relegation battle again this season, as they head into their Boxing Day clash with Crystal Palace just six points above the drop zone.

“It’s not a great way to go into Christmas, but the good thing about this period is that the matches are a quick turnaround,” said Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan. “It makes Palace a massive game and we have to make sure we come out of it with three points.”